JP2005110527A - Drink-producing method and drink-producing apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable the discharge of bubbles formed in a drink without deteriorating the flavor of the drink. <P>SOLUTION: This drink-producing apparatus (20) equipped with a drink-degasification means (3) and a bubble-breaking means (5) used after a process for degasifying the drink, and the drink-producing method using the drink-producing apparatus. The drink-producing apparatus may furthermore be equipped with a drink-sterilizing means (10). The drink-degasification means may contain at least one of a deaerator, an inactive gas-stripping portion, and a static mixer. The bubble-breaking means may be a pump capable of breaking the membranes of bubbles. It is preferable that the content of oxygen dissolved in the drink is 0.5 ppm after the bubbles are broken. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a beverage production method for producing a beverage and a beverage production apparatus for carrying out this method.

  In the current market, various types of beverages such as tea beverages, fruit juice beverages, and dairy beverages are sold. Among these beverages, for example, tea beverages are said to have the highest flavor in a freshly brewed state, and fruit juice beverages, dairy beverages and the like in a squeezed state. However, oxygen mixed in the beverage during or after the production of the beverage, particularly dissolved oxygen in the dissolved gas, oxidizes certain flavor components such as vitamin C in the beverage, and thereby the flavor of the beverage is gradually impaired. become. Therefore, methods for reducing dissolved gas in beverages, particularly dissolved oxygen, have been proposed in the past. The physical oxygen removal method includes an injection method and a tower flushing method, and the chemical method includes a deoxidizer. It is already well-known.

  In addition to fruit juice beverages and dairy beverages, beverages other than these, such as tea beverages, need to be sterilized when they are stored for a long time in a container. Such a sterilizing action is performed by retaining a beverage for a predetermined time in an environment of high temperature, for example, 80 ° C. to 130 ° C. However, since the beverage is exposed to high temperatures during sterilization, the oxidation action by oxygen, particularly dissolved oxygen in the beverage, is promoted so that certain flavor components are similarly oxidized and the flavor of the beverage is impaired. Become. In order to avoid losing the flavor during such heat sterilization, for example, in Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, a beverage containing milk or fruit juice is replaced with an inert gas, and dissolved gas in the beverage, particularly These beverages are sterilized in a state where dissolved oxygen is lowered. In such a case, since the dissolved oxygen in the beverage at the time of heat sterilization is reduced, it is possible to minimize the loss of the beverage flavor due to oxidation (for example, Patent Document 1 or Patent) Reference 2).

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-295341 (FIG. 1)

JP 2001-78665 A (FIG. 1)

  By the way, when removing the dissolved gas, especially dissolved oxygen in the beverage, for example, when the beverage is replaced with an inert gas as described above, or when the beverage is passed through a delator equipped with a decompression chamber, there are many cases. A large amount of bubbles are generated in the beverage or on the liquid surface of the beverage. In particular, when a beverage to be replaced with an inert gas contains protein and / or saccharide, a very large amount of bubbles are formed by these components. In such a case, a part of the beverage can overflow from the storage tank due to a large amount of air bubbles, and it is physically difficult to pass the beverage through the piping system, and a predetermined amount of beverage cannot be supplied to the subsequent process. . Further, even if a beverage containing bubbles can be supplied to the post-process, these bubbles may adhere to a post-process device such as a sterilizer, and the function and processing efficiency of these devices may be significantly reduced. Furthermore, once degassed gas, especially oxygen, may be dissolved again in the beverage. On the other hand, in order to avoid a large amount of air bubbles being supplied to the subsequent process together with the beverage, for example, the pressure in the decompression chamber in the deaerator described above is increased more than usual or used for replacement. Although it is conceivable to suppress the generation of bubbles by reducing the supply amount of the active gas, such a case is not preferable because the amount of degassed dissolved beverage in the beverage is reduced.

  It is also assumed that the beverage after replacement with an inert gas is taken out from the lower surface of the buffer tank and supplied to the subsequent process while leaving only bubbles above the buffer tank in a state where the beverage is stored in, for example, another buffer tank. The However, although the gas in the bubbles is unnecessary as a beverage, the film itself that forms the bubbles is a part of the beverage, so the liquid part of such a film needs to be supplied to the subsequent process as a beverage. The final beverage component and flavor were initially planned, especially when the beverage component forming the bubble film is different from the non-filmed liquid component beverage component. Ingredients and flavors can vary.

  Furthermore, waiting for the bubbles on the beverage to disappear naturally, and spraying the liquid on the bubbles on the beverage to cause them to disappear are also envisaged. The defoaming effect cannot be obtained, and the gas once deaerated, particularly oxygen, may be dissolved again in the beverage, so that it cannot be employed in a normal beverage production line.

  Therefore, as a result of intensive studies to overcome the above problems, the present inventor may degas the dissolved gas in the beverage and separate the film from the gas with respect to the bubbles generated in the beverage during the degassing action. As a result, the present inventors have completed the present invention by constructing a beverage production method and a beverage production apparatus.

  That is, the present invention provides a beverage production method capable of eliminating bubbles formed in a beverage and reducing dissolved oxygen in the beverage without impairing the flavor of the beverage, and a beverage production apparatus for carrying out this method. The purpose is to do.

  In order to achieve the above-described object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a beverage production method in which a bubble breaking step is provided after a beverage deaeration step.

  That is, according to the first invention, the dissolved gas in the beverage can be reduced, and the gas in the film that forms bubbles generated during deaeration and the liquid that has formed the film of bubbles can be separated. And the liquid which had formed the film | membrane of a bubble is collect | recovered as a drink, The bubble formed in the drink can be excluded and the dissolved oxygen in a drink can be reduced, without impairing the flavor of a drink. In the present invention, since the bubble film is actively broken, the defoaming effect can be obtained in a very short time.

According to the second invention, in the first invention, a gas discharge step is further provided after the bubble breaking step.
That is, according to the second invention, the gas generated from the beverage can be reliably discharged. Thereby, it can prevent that the gas once deaerated once melt | dissolves in a drink again, and can reduce the dissolved oxygen in a drink more reliably.

According to a third aspect, in the first or second aspect, a further sterilization step for the beverage is provided.
That is, according to the third invention, even when the sterilizing action is performed by heat treatment, it is possible to reduce the dissolved oxygen in the dissolved gas in the beverage from oxidizing the components in the beverage during heating. This further prevents the flavor of the beverage from being impaired.

According to the fourth invention, in any one of the first to third inventions, the amount of dissolved oxygen in the beverage after the deaeration step is 0.5 ppm or less.
That is, according to the fourth aspect of the present invention, the amount of dissolved oxygen in the beverage can be optimally prevented from being oxidized by the dissolved oxygen.

According to a fifth aspect, in the first to fourth aspects, the beverage is a beverage having a foaming property.
That is, according to the fifth aspect, the dissolved gas in the beverage can be deaerated well from the beverage, and the bubble film can be favorably broken.

According to the sixth aspect of the invention, there is provided a beverage production apparatus comprising a beverage deaeration unit and a bubble breaker unit.
That is, according to the sixth aspect, the dissolved gas in the beverage can be reduced, and the gas in the film that forms bubbles generated during deaeration and the liquid that has formed the film of bubbles can be separated. Then, by recovering the liquid forming the bubble film as a beverage, the bubbles formed in the beverage can be eliminated without impairing the beverage flavor. In the present invention, since the bubble film is actively broken, the defoaming effect can be obtained in a very short time.

According to the seventh invention, in the sixth invention, further, a gas discharging means is provided.
That is, according to the seventh aspect, the gas generated from the beverage can be reliably discharged. Thereby, it can prevent that the gas once deaerated once melt | dissolves in a drink again, and can reduce the dissolved oxygen in a drink more reliably.

According to the eighth invention, in the sixth or seventh invention, the beverage sterilizing means is further provided.
That is, according to the eighth aspect, even when the bactericidal action is performed by heat treatment, dissolved oxygen in the dissolved gas in the beverage can be reduced from oxidizing the components in the beverage during heating. This further prevents the flavor of the beverage from being impaired.

According to a ninth invention, in the sixth to eighth inventions, the deaeration means includes at least one of a deaerator, an inert gas stripping unit, and a static mixer.
That is, according to the ninth aspect, the dissolved gas in the beverage can be satisfactorily degassed from the beverage.

According to a tenth invention, in any one of the sixth to ninth inventions, the bubble breaking means is a pump capable of breaking a bubble film.
That is, according to the tenth invention, the bubble film in the beverage can be favorably broken.

According to each invention, the common effect that the bubbles formed in the beverage can be eliminated without impairing the flavor of the beverage can be achieved.
Furthermore, according to the 2nd invention, the effect that the gas produced from the drink can be discharged | emitted reliably can be show | played.
Furthermore, according to the third invention, even when the sterilization action is performed by heat treatment, it is possible to reduce the dissolved oxygen in the dissolved gas in the beverage during the heating to oxidize the components in the beverage. It can have the effect.
Furthermore, according to the fourth aspect of the invention, it is possible to achieve an effect that dissolved oxygen can be optimally prevented from oxidizing the components in the beverage.
Furthermore, according to the fifth aspect, the dissolved gas in the beverage can be degassed from the beverage satisfactorily, and the bubble film can be favorably broken.
Furthermore, according to the seventh aspect, it is possible to produce an effect that the gas generated from the beverage can be reliably discharged.
Furthermore, according to the eighth invention, even when the sterilization action is performed by heat treatment, it is possible to reduce the amount of dissolved oxygen in the dissolved gas in the beverage during the heating to oxidize the components in the beverage. It can have the effect.
Furthermore, according to the ninth aspect, it is possible to achieve an effect that the dissolved gas in the beverage can be satisfactorily degassed from the beverage.
Furthermore, according to the tenth invention, there can be obtained an effect that the bubble film in the beverage can be favorably broken.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the following drawings, the same members are denoted by the same reference numerals. In order to facilitate understanding, the scales of these drawings are appropriately changed.
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a beverage production apparatus according to the present invention. In the beverage production apparatus 20 of FIG. 1, the mixing tank 1 for preparing a drink inside is shown on the left side of FIG. In the present invention, the beverage blended in the blending tank 1 is desirably a beverage having a foaming property, and examples thereof include coffee, tea beverages, soft drinks, and chuhai, but are not limited thereto. The preparation tank 1 is connected to the deaeration means 3 via the liquid feed pump 2 by a beverage pipe 24 shown by a solid line in FIG. The deaeration means 3 serves to escape dissolved gas dissolved in the beverage, for example, dissolved oxygen from the inside of the beverage to the outside of the beverage (hereinafter referred to as “deaeration” as appropriate). The deaeration means 3 shown in FIG. 1 assumes an inert gas stripping unit that reduces the amount of dissolved gas, particularly dissolved oxygen, in the beverage by supplying an inert gas such as nitrogen gas into the beverage. Yes. Accordingly, the deaeration means 3 shown in FIG. 1 is connected to the inert gas supply unit 4 by the inert gas line 21. Moreover, you may employ | adopt the deaerator provided with the decompression chamber inside as the deaeration means 3, In this case, when passing a drink through a decompression chamber, the dissolved gas in a drink will escape out of a drink. . Furthermore, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that a static mixer can be adopted as the deaeration means 3. That is, any other mechanism that allows the dissolved gas inside the beverage to escape to the outside of the beverage can be employed as the deaeration means 3. Accordingly, the inert gas supply unit 4 and the inert gas line 21 can be eliminated according to the type of the deaeration means 3 used, and a vacuum pump 7 and a vacuum line 23 as will be described later are connected to the deaeration means 3. You may make it do.

  Further, in FIG. 1, the deaeration means 3 is connected to the bubble breaking means 5 by a pipe 24. The bubble breaker 5 serves to break the bubble film formed in the deaerator 3 as will be described later. Since the bubble breaking means 5 shown in FIG. 1 is assumed to be a bubble breaking pump to be described in detail later, the bubble breaking means 5 is connected to the vacuum pump 7 via the drain separator 6 by a vacuum line 23 indicated by a dotted line. Yes. In this embodiment, the discharging means is constituted by a drain separator 6 and a vacuum pump 7. The gas generated from the beverage can be reliably discharged by the discharging means. Pressure gauges 13 and 14 are provided between the deaeration means 3 and the bubble breaking means 5 and between the bubble breaking means 5 and an inert gas replacement tank 8 described later. The pressure in the pipe 24 in the stage can be measured. Further, a pressure gauge 18 is provided in the vacuum line 23 as shown in the figure. As in the case of the deaeration means 3 described above, any other mechanism capable of breaking the bubble film can be adopted as the bubble breaking means 5. Depending on the type of the bubble breaking means 5, the drain separator 6, the vacuum pump 7, Any one of the inert gas line 21 and the pressure gauges 13, 14, and 18 can be excluded.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the bubble breaking means 5 is connected to an inert gas replacement tank 8 by a pipe 24. The inert gas replacement tank 8 is connected to the inert gas supply unit 4 by another inert gas line 22 so that an inert gas, for example, nitrogen is supplied into the inert gas replacement tank 8. . Furthermore, the lower part of the inert gas replacement tank 8 is connected to the sterilizing means 10 via the liquid feed pump 9 by a pipe 24. In the sterilizing means 10, the beverage can be kept at a predetermined temperature for a predetermined time. Next, the sterilized beverage is supplied to the filling unit 11 and filled in a container such as a can, a bottle, a plastic bottle, or a paper pack.

  As can be seen from FIG. 1, flow meters 12 and 15 are provided between the liquid feed pump 2 and the deaeration means 3 and between the liquid feed pump 9 and the sterilization means 10 to measure the flow rate of the beverage in the pipe 24. It can be done. Further, as shown in the figure, flow meters 16 and 17 are provided in the inert gas lines 21 and 22, respectively, so that the flow rate of an inert gas such as nitrogen flowing through the inert gas lines 21 and 22 can be measured. It has become.

  During the operation of the beverage production apparatus 20, the beverage prepared in the preparation tank 1 is supplied from the preparation tank 1 to the deaeration means 3 by the liquid feed pump 2. Subsequently, in the deaeration means 3, dissolved gas in the beverage, for example, dissolved oxygen is deaerated. As an example, a case where an inert gas stripping unit as shown in FIG. In this case, the deaeration means 3 has a tank shape, and the beverage is accumulated in this tank. Next, an inert gas in the inert gas supply unit 4, such as nitrogen, is supplied into the beverage of the deaeration means 3 through the inert gas line 21. Thereby, a drink comes to be replaced by an inert gas. At this time, the dissolved gas in the beverage, for example, dissolved oxygen, is absorbed into the inert gas bubbles. And since the bubble of an inert gas floats to the liquid level of a drink in the state which took in dissolved gas, after replacing a drink with an inert gas, the amount of dissolved gas in a drink falls significantly.

  However, in the case where an inert gas / stripping portion that performs replacement with an inert gas is employed as the degassing means 3, the bubbles of the inert gas that have taken in the dissolved gas do not disappear after rising to near the liquid level of the beverage. As a bubble, it stays on or below the liquid level of the beverage. When the replacement with the inert gas is continuously performed, the number of the bubbles of the inert gas that has taken in the dissolved gas also continuously increases, so that these bubbles are a relatively thick layer mainly on the liquid surface of the beverage. It will begin to accumulate. Even when another method, for example, a deaerator or a static mixer is employed as the deaeration means 3, a layer composed of bubbles is similarly formed regardless of whether or not an inert gas is used.

  By the way, when such a layer composed of bubbles is formed on the liquid surface of the beverage, not only is it difficult to supply the beverage to the post-process, but also the bubbles are generated in the post-process device, for example, the sterilizing means 10. It may adhere to the inside and impair the function of the device. Although the gas inside the bubbles is not necessary as a beverage, the portion of the film that forms bubbles is necessary as a beverage. When these bubbles are removed together with the bubble membrane, the final beverage components and flavors It may be different from the originally planned ingredients and flavor. For this reason, in the present invention, the bubble breaking means 5 for breaking the bubble film formed in the degassing means 3 is provided on the downstream side of the degassing means 3. In order to appropriately supply the beverage from the deaeration means 3 to the foam breaking means 5, the inner diameter of the pipe 24 between the deaeration means 3 and the foam breaking means 5 is made larger than the other part or broken. The foam means 5 is preferably arranged adjacent to the degassing means 3.

  FIG. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of foam breaking means as an example in the beverage production apparatus of the present invention. The bubble breaking means 5 shown in FIG. 2 is in the form of a bubble breaking pump 5 for breaking the bubble film, that is, for breaking the bubble. As shown in FIG. 2, the substantially cylindrical casing 31 of the foam breaking pump 5 is provided with an inlet portion 32 and an outlet portion 33. The inlet portion 32 is connected to the deaeration means 3 by a pipe 24 shown in FIG. 1, and the outlet portion 33 is connected to the inert gas replacement tank 8 by a pipe 24. Further, a suction port 35 is formed in the casing 31, and the suction port 35 is connected to the drain separator 6 and the vacuum pump 7 constituting the discharge means by the vacuum line 23 shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 2, the bubble breaking pump 5 includes a rotating shaft portion 41 in the casing 31, and the tip 43 of the rotating shaft portion 41 is disposed so as to face the suction port 35. The inside of the casing 31 is partitioned into a first chamber 37 and a second chamber 38 by a partition member 36. Further, the base end of the rotating shaft portion 41 protrudes from the casing 31 via the bearing 34 and is connected to the motor 49. As shown in the drawing, a separating blade 42 is provided in the first chamber 37 located on the distal end 43 side of the rotating shaft portion 41, and the second chamber 38 located on the proximal end side of the rotating shaft portion 41 is mainly in the second chamber 38. An impeller 44 is provided. In the second chamber 38, a plurality of substantially L-shaped inducers 45 are provided between the separation blade 42 and the main impeller 44.

  When the bubble breaker pump 5 is operated, the rotating shaft 41 is rotated by the motor 49. And the drink containing many bubbles is supplied in the 2nd chamber 38 of the foam breaking pump 5 from the inlet part 32. FIG. Since the rotating shaft portion 41 including the inducer 45 is rotating, the liquid portion of the beverage containing a large amount of bubbles is accumulated on the inner peripheral surface portion 48 of the substantially cylindrical casing 31 by centrifugal force. On the other hand, the central portion of the substantially cylindrical casing 31, that is, the periphery of the rotation shaft portion 41 becomes negative pressure, so that the bubble portion of the beverage is concentrated around the rotation shaft portion 41. Since the suction port 35 is connected to the vacuum line 23, the bubbles concentrated around the rotation shaft portion 41 pass through the gap 40 between the partition portion 36 and the rotation shaft portion 41 from the second chamber 38 to the first. It moves to the chamber 37. In the first chamber 37, the separation blade 42 rotates around the rotation shaft portion 41, and a plurality of holes 46 are formed in the separation blade 42 in the direction from the proximal end of the rotation shaft portion 41 toward the distal end 43. . When the bubbles that have moved into the first chamber 37 are sucked toward the suction port 35, the bubbles pass through the hole 46 of the separation blade 42. At this time, when the bubbles collide with the inner wall of the hole 46, the film forming the bubbles is broken. As a result, the bubbles are separated into the liquid forming the bubble film and the gas confined in the bubble film. Then, both the liquid and the gas move through the hole 46 to the vicinity of the suction port 35 in the first chamber 37, but only a relatively small gas is sucked through the suction port 35 and has a relatively large mass. Large liquid will remain in the first chamber 37. Next, these liquids return to the second chamber 38 again through a gap 39 between the first chamber 37 and the second chamber 38 shown in the lower part of FIG. Finally, the liquid portion of the beverage in the second chamber 38 flows out from the outlet 33 by the main impeller 44 and is supplied to the inert gas replacement tank 8 shown in FIG. By completely discharging the gas by the discharging means, it is possible to reliably prevent the once degassed gas from being dissolved again. In addition, as a discharge means, a vacuum pump is desirable, but any configuration may be used as long as the gas generated from the beverage can be discharged.

  Referring again to FIG. 1, the beverage that has passed through the foam breaking means 5 is supplied to the inert gas replacement tank 8 in a state of containing almost no bubbles. As shown, an inert gas in the inert gas supply unit 4, such as nitrogen, is supplied to the upper part of the inert gas replacement tank 8 through the inert gas line 22. If a gas containing oxygen, for example, air, is present in the inert gas replacement tank 8, the beverage may be oxidized. By supplying the inert gas into the inert gas replacement tank 8, The beverage can be prevented from coming into contact with oxygen, thereby avoiding beverage oxidation. In the case where re-dissolution of oxygen hardly occurs, an open tank may be used instead of the inert gas replacement tank.

  Next, the beverage is supplied to the sterilizing means 10 by the liquid feed pump 9 at a predetermined flow rate. In the sterilizing means 10, the beverage is kept at a predetermined temperature, for example, 80 ° C. to 130 ° C. for about 1 minute to 20 minutes, whereby the beverage is sterilized. Although it is necessary to supply the beverage at a predetermined flow rate during sterilization in the sterilization means 10, the above-described inert gas replacement tank 8 can be used as a buffer tank, so that a beverage with a predetermined flow rate can be reliably supplied to the sterilization means 10. it can. When the beverage is sterilized by heat treatment, dissolved oxygen in the beverage may also oxidize certain components in the beverage. However, in the present invention, the degassing means 3 reduces the dissolved gas, particularly dissolved oxygen, in the beverage. Therefore, it is possible to avoid the beverage from being oxidized during the heat sterilization. Finally, the beverage is supplied from the sterilization means 10 to the filling unit 11 and filled in a container, for example, a can, a bottle, a plastic bottle, a paper pack or the like.

  In the foam breaking means 5 of the present invention, for example, the foam breaking pump 5 as shown in FIG. 2, the membrane forming bubbles contained in the beverage is actively broken by the separation blade 42. And the gas confined in the bubble film | membrane in the bubble breaking means 5 and the liquid which formed this film | membrane are isolate | separated, and the liquid which formed the bubble film | membrane is collect | recovered with a drink. . As described above, when the component of the beverage that forms the bubble film is different from the component of the beverage in the liquid part that does not form the film, a defect occurs in the component and flavor of the beverage as the final product. Although there is a possibility, in the present invention, since the liquid forming the bubble film is recovered as a beverage, the bubbles formed in the beverage are eliminated without impairing the flavor of the beverage. Dissolved gas can be reduced. Furthermore, in such a foam breaking means 5, since the film | membrane which forms a bubble is fractured | ruptured actively, a defoaming effect can be acquired in a very short time, and, thereby, the operation efficiency of a drink production line This foam breaking means 5 can be incorporated into the beverage production line without lowering. Although a bubble breaker pump is shown as an example of the bubble breaker 5, the bubble breaker 5 is not limited to the bubble breaker pump described above, and any bubble that actively breaks the film forming bubbles. Including forms.

  30 g of green tea leaves were extracted with 1050 g of pure water at 75 ° C. for 5 minutes, the tea leaves were removed from the extract, cooled, centrifuged, and then adjusted to 4 L by adding L-ascorbic acid, sodium bicarbonate and pure water. After that, an inert gas stripping part using nitrogen (N2) as an inert gas is used as the degassing means 3 and filled and sealed under a nitrogen gas flow. The product was sterilized. Table 1 shows the amount of dissolved oxygen, the amount of vitamin C, and sensory evaluation.

  In the case of “level 1” in which degassing by the degassing means 3 is not performed, the dissolved oxygen in the final beverage was about 8 ppm. As shown in “Level 2” in Table 1, the dissolved oxygen is about 1.8 ppm when stripping with nitrogen is performed for 15 minutes, and stripping with nitrogen is performed for 60 minutes as shown in “Level 3”. When performed, the dissolved oxygen was about 0.4 ppm. That is, it is understood that the dissolved oxygen in the beverage decreases as the degassing by the degassing means 3, in this case, the stripping with nitrogen gas is performed for a long time. In addition, the amount of vitamin C is the lowest in “level 1” where no deaeration is performed, and this is presumed to be due to the reduction of vitamin C due to oxidative degradation in the subsequent process after deaeration, particularly in the sterilization process. it can. On the other hand, in the case of “Level 2” and “Level 3” with low dissolved oxygen, the decrease in vitamin C is suppressed, and “Level 3” with low dissolved oxygen is less than “Level 2”. However, the decrease in vitamin C is small. Furthermore, with regard to sensory evaluation, the more vitamin C, the better. In this case, when the dissolved oxygen is about 0.4 ppm and the allowance is taken, it can be seen that if the amount of dissolved oxygen is 0.5 ppm or less, a beverage with a sensory superior quality can be obtained.

  Table 2 shows the amount of dissolved oxygen before the foam breaking pump (before the foam breaking means 5) when ordinary water is used as a beverage. In Table 2, an inert gas stripping part using nitrogen (N 2) as an inert gas was used as the deaeration means 3. The amount of dissolved oxygen before allowing the beverage to pass through the deaeration means 3 was 7.91 ppm.

  When the flow rate of the beverage and the flow rate of nitrogen in the deaeration means 3 were variously changed as shown in Table 2, it can be seen that the greater the flow rate of the beverage, the greater the amount of dissolved oxygen. It can be estimated that this is because when the beverage flow rate is large, the residence time of the beverage in the deaeration means 3 becomes small, so that the dissolved oxygen cannot be sufficiently replaced. On the other hand, when the flow rate of nitrogen is large, the substitution is promoted, so the amount of dissolved oxygen in the beverage becomes small.

  Table 3 shows the amount of dissolved oxygen after the foam breaking pump (after foam breaking means 5) under the same conditions as in Table 2. Since the bubble-breaking pump is connected to the vacuum line 23 from the vacuum pump 7, it can be seen that the amount of dissolved oxygen tends to decrease slightly compared to the case of Table 2.

  Another embodiment when an inert gas stripping unit using nitrogen (N 2) as an inert gas is used as the deaeration means 3 will be described. A green tea preparation liquid having a dissolved oxygen amount of about 8 ppm is supplied from the preparation tank 1 to the deaeration means 3 by the liquid feed pump 2. The flow rate of nitrogen in the deaeration means 3 is 10 L / min, and the flow rate of the beverage is 20 L / min. Next, the beverage after the foam breaking treatment was performed in the foam breaking pump adopted as the foam breaking means 5 was sampled by 10 L in a 10 L measuring cylinder. Table 4 shows the amount of dissolved oxygen and the ratio of foaming (bubble height in the graduated cylinder / height of the graduated cylinder) at this time.

  As shown in Table 4, the amount of dissolved oxygen in the beverage, which was 8 ppm before being supplied to the deaeration means 3, decreased to 0.27 ppm after passing through the deaeration means 3 (before the foam breaking pump) and further broken. Even after the foam pump, it slightly decreases and finally becomes 0.23 ppm. Further, before the bubble breaking pump, the bubble height in the measuring cylinder is 22 cm and the measuring cylinder height is 45 cm, so the ratio of the bubble height is about 0.49. On the other hand, after the bubble breaking pump, the bubble height is 0 cm, so the ratio of the bubble height is also zero. That is, it can be seen that the bubbles in the beverage can be almost completely eliminated by the processing in the foam breaking pump in this case, that is, the foam breaking means 5.

  Table 5 shows the amount of caffeine and catechin epigallocatechin gallate (hereinafter referred to as “EGCG”) in the green tea preparation before treatment in the deaeration means and after treatment in the foam breaking means. The result measured by liquid chromatography is shown. As can be seen from Table 5, the amount of caffeine and EGCG related to the flavor before and after the treatment hardly changed. Moreover, in the sensory results, very good sensory results are obtained in either case. That is, in the bubble breaking means 5 of the present invention, the bubble film is broken and the liquid that has formed the bubble film is recovered, so that the sensory result based on the beverage components and flavor is not impaired, It is in very good condition. That is, the component and flavor of the beverage are not impaired by the foam breaking means 5 of the present invention.

1 is a schematic diagram of a beverage production device according to one embodiment of the present invention. It is a longitudinal direction sectional view of the bubble breaking means as an example in the beverage manufacturing apparatus of the present invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Preparation tank 2 ... Liquid feed pump 3 ... Deaeration means 4 ... Inert gas supply part 5 ... Bubble breaking means 6 ... Drain separator 7 ... Vacuum pump 8 ... Inert gas substitution tank 9 ... Liquid feed pump 10 ... Sterilization means DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 ... Filling part 12, 15, 16, 17 ... Flowmeter 13, 14, 18 ... Pressure gauge 20 ... Beverage manufacturing apparatus 21, 22 ... Inert gas line 23 ... Vacuum line 24 ... Beverage piping

Claims (10)

After the beverage deaeration process,
A beverage production method provided with a bubble breaking step.   Furthermore, the drink manufacturing method of Claim 1 which provided the discharge process of gas after the said foam breaking process.   Furthermore, the drink manufacturing method of Claim 1 or 2 which provided the sterilization process of the said drink.   The method for producing a beverage according to claims 1 to 3, wherein the amount of dissolved oxygen in the beverage after the deaeration step is 0.5 ppm or less.   The beverage production method according to claim 1, wherein the beverage is a beverage having a foaming property. Beverage degassing means;
A beverage production apparatus comprising bubble-breaking means.   Furthermore, the drink manufacturing apparatus of Claim 6 which comprises the discharge means of gas.   Furthermore, the drink manufacturing apparatus of Claim 6 or 7 which comprises the sterilization means of the said drink.   The beverage production apparatus according to any one of claims 6 to 8, wherein the deaeration means includes at least one of a deaerator, an inert gas stripping unit, and a static mixer.   The beverage production apparatus according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein the bubble breaking means is a pump capable of breaking a bubble film.

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